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I have notice this recently (although it might have gone on longer) that popular shows attract what i call the negative viewers. Viewers whose first post of the Episode is all about what they don't like. There is no mention of what they do like, which leaves me wondering if they like any part of the show at all and if not why they keep watching?

I am not talking about poster who have constructive criticism but viewers
1. who already admitted they don't like the character or the plot.
2. who keep looking for plot holes instead of just enjoying the show
3. in a future scifi setting will keep question the science the setting is base on.

I see the same thing as well. I can't comprehend why they watch a show(or read a manga) if you are just going to find what is wrong with it. It is not that most people don't like the show. It is just the ones who don't have more voice than the ones that do.

This thing popped me recently as well. When I think of something like this, maybe the viewers try to find a peculiar show that was originally planned to enjoy and like it, only to end up hating a lot so they have no choice but to continue watching until the end as an excuse to find everything's wrong in-show. There's some that portray them very well, like Seven of SeventhStyle or Flawfinder.

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I will protect you from the darkness and I change my destiny.MyAnimeList

I think there are people that simply enjoy bashing anime series they don't like, so much that they can even go the trouble of watching every single episode of it (albeit they despise it) for that purpose.

Criticism is all right, and I make a lot of that myself, but I don't think I ever reached the point where I would write an essay of "everything that is bad" for every single episode thread, and I've seen people doing that.

Some even take a step further, like that guy that voted "1" to every single episode poll, before even watching them.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MisaoFan

This thing popped me recently as well. When I think of something like this, maybe the viewers try to find a peculiar show that was originally planned to enjoy and like it, only to end up hating a lot so they have no choice but to continue watching until the end as an excuse to find everything's wrong in-show. There's some that portray them very well, like Seven of SeventhStyle or Flawfinder.

I think this often happens with adaptions, especially when someone liked the original a lot.

I often bash the first episodes of thing I dislike, but then I drop it and move on.

My only guess is this behaviour occurs when a particular show is the "in thing", and the poster doesn't want to feel left out, or they just want to "enlighten" others who like a "terribad" show.

There are also those who initially really liked the show, as the show went on found they liked it less and less, but are so far into it that they don't want to drop it. So instead they just hate on it to vent their disappointment.

In my case its pure research purposes as well as to keep track of and informed of trends and the like and to help in forging personal standards to which I can refer to if necessary. When it comes to commentary on such shows I tend to keep it limited and just be honest without coming across as a pure troll baiter and thread shitter since despite what some might think its not my intention. Basically I frown on hijacking threads and ruining them for people that do enjoy the shows in the process of pursuing my own goals for posting about shows im not terribly keen on and generally only reply to people that quote my posts while trying to give them the best answer and reasoning for what ive said.

Generally I've found this approach works great for me and that people tend not to mind and get overly defensive since I try not to be offensive except under one very specific set of circumstances where people will seemingly avoid conversation and report my posts and get veru upset at any individual criticism when a simple attempt to engage me in civil discourse or just let it be would result in no problems for anyone whatsoever since I'm not one too get offended when people ask me to justify myself further by any means. In fact I see it as an obligation to respond to any inquiry I receive to the best of my ability and in many cases its the only reason i bother to make more than a single passing opinion post on a show I'm not keen on. Needless to say I no longer bother to post under that specific circumstance anymore cause its not worth the hassle or zero tolerance approach to honest criticism I tend to receive. Id rather post where my thoughts and opinions are appreciated for what they are rather than how they lean, which fortunately is the majority of this forums threads.

1. Some people really enjoy bashing shows and want more ammo to do so with. It's like all the people that read Twilight so they could criticize it better. I'm going to guess most of the people you are thinking of fall into this category.
2. Some of us are huge fans of original works. We have to watch the adaptation, clinging to the tiny fragments of hope that it will suddenly get awesome near the end.
3. Watching bad things could possibly help improve your own writing skills, so maybe some prospective writers on this board are doing that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xellos-_^

3. in a future scifi setting will keep question the science the setting is base on.

Some people have no clue how to suspend their reality in favor of the show's. The fact that the setting is not grounded in reality doesn't preclude a good story with solid characters though.

This doesn't happen to fantasy as much since the show fully acknowledges itself as separate from our reality, while a lot of sci-fantasy tries to be "realistic."

Also, along with the poor physicists trying to enjoy their scifi anime without cringing too often, there are always trolls that want to sound smart.

Well when you're a blogger or reviewer as I am, there is a certain need to go outside your comfort zone willingly and try things you might not necessarily enjoy.

Ultimately though I will not keep up with a series if it actually bores me to death. Boring is the worst kind of bad. Generally if I follow something to the end, it had enough qualities to be somewhat entertaining in some way. I don't tend to be the kind of person to derive enjoyment out of simply watching something terrible (So bad its good).

Yeah sometimes I have nothing good to say about a work, and I'll keep up with it regardless, but this is just my behavior when I post on forums. Generally the series I like the most I don't tend to post at all really. Shinsekai Yori and Psycho Pass I really love this season but I don't believe I contributed a single post to their threads once they started airing. That's just my quirk, though it seems that I mislead people into believing I don't enjoy anything, when in reality I probably enjoy more anime titles per season that most people (I'm following like 14-15 ongoing series right now, and genuinely like 12-13 of them).

I would summarize my reasons as follows:

A series I keep up with to the VERY end isn't totally devoid of enjoyable factors

Blogger/Reviewer activities require a balanced load of titles to write about

I usually drop a show if I really dislike it. However sometimes I give it a few episodes before doing so.

There are also the shows as DonQuigleone states that I might have liked at first but I started liking less and less after awhile. Depending on how long the series is I usually will finish something if I got so far already....even if I start to dislike it (although there are times I dropped a series with only a few episodes to go out of frustration. It all depends).

Another thing though I have to say I hate when people say you can't have an opinion unless you finish something. I think this is kind of an unfair response. Honestly I have never come across a series that went from bad to great. I have come across series that started out sort of mediocre that turned into something special, but I can't think of any series that I thought were outright terrible turn into something wonderful.

I think usually when someone highly dislikes something, they have a good reason. And they don't need to watch the whole series to realize their opinion is justified (obviously that doesn't mean I am going to have an opinion on the ending of the series).

At the same time when I do criticize a series I try to do this outside of places where fans gather because I think it is rude to ruin their enjoyment. Of course this is after I already dropped the series. If I haven't dropped the series then at least I am going to post my reactions on episode threads whether it is a positive or negative opinion.

I'm of the same mind with Reckoner. Because I am quite involved in some stuff that requires as much anime knowledge as possible, sometimes I don't want to get lost in a discussion simply because I dropped a popular anime after an episode. However, I don't go around saying I hate the anime on every episode thread--there's more productive things I can do with my time.

And that's where the difference lies. I don't find joy in picking apart an anime whenever I can. I don't need to find people to disagree with so I can force my views across. If I review an anime and it's bad, that's a one time thing. But more often than not, I enjoy talking about things I do like instead of things I don't like. I don't know much about Kaioshin, but from what he said in this thread, I agree that I also frown upon hijacking threads just to ruin it for people who like the anime.

Now the popularity-hate sentiment is quite understandable, if unfair. If everyone talks about an anime you only find so-so, then you will sometimes get annoyed and find the negative parts to counter everyone else's praise. And if you haven't watched said popular anime, then your expectations are sky high, which means even an above average anime would affect you negatively because of all the hype. So I believe some people only post negative things because they are truly confused why a hyped anime is so well liked. But I guess some will post negative things because it gives them pleasure or something...people are different I guess.

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As an aside, the opposite thing also happens. I once reviewed an anime that I liked, offering it good points and bad points and ends up giving it a 7/10. I got hit by a shitstorm of people who asked why I didn't give it a "perfect" and not realizing that 7/10 is actually a positive score. There are both sides to everything.

As an aside, the opposite thing also happens. I once reviewed an anime that I liked, offering it good points and bad points and ends up giving it a 7/10. I got hit by a shitstorm of people who asked why I didn't give it a "perfect" and not realizing that 7/10 is actually a positive score. There are both sides to everything.

I think there's something to be said for this. It seems like there's a tendency in reviewing, professional game reviews in particular I've noticed, to rate things on a 7-10 scale, with consumers seeing any number below 8 as just not worth their investment. This also happens a lot with shows people that have ardent fans; any slight against the show is interpreted as "I don't like this show and it's bad", when really all you're doing is trying to point out that you don't think the show is perfect. On the flip-side, when a show gets super-popular, and people are constantly exposed to it whether they like it or not, there tends to be a bitter backlash from people who feel that they have to exaggerate their dislike of it to almost hyperbolic levels just to make a statement. (E.g. Sword Art Online.) I'm sure that gets under some people's skin, and I'm sure some people really do keep watching a show just to perpetually point out its (perceived) flaws. That's just the result of being in the spotlight, unfortunately.

The internet in general tends to foster this impulse to talk about what you hate a lot, not just in the anime circles. Try talking about any movie or series with vampires in it and see how long it takes for someone to mention how Twilight ruined them. Try listening to Iron Maiden or (insert older band you like here) on Youtube and see how many of the comments are about how Justin Bieber is fruity and lame.

Yes, I get it, many things suck. Now please, stop bringing them up every five minutes. I'm trying to enjoy the good stuff and you're cramping my style.

Dang it Avalon, you c(XD LOL)-block Shirou and Reinforce, but don't protect his mind in other ways? What is wrong, you woman?
Friendship, be made! Magical power, gather! Starlight Breaker.... this world!

I often bash the first episodes of thing I dislike, but then I drop it and move on.

I admit, I have been like this on the Muv-Luv and Psycho-Pass threads. I'm the sort of anime viewer who despises the need of the storyteller to present a plot that reeks of despair (the same reason why I did not watch Puella Magi Madoka Magica, but at least I liked Ume Aoki's character designs.) But at least, I never stay in the threads like a festering disease.

Hidan no Aria is a different story. I have to wonder why such a plot whose plot direction is comparable to Bleach's is still selling a lot. The anime series is also the only series wherein I was so disappointed that it turned me into a genuine hater.

Quote:

Yes, I get it, many things suck. Now please, stop bringing them up every five minutes. I'm trying to enjoy the good stuff and you're cramping my style.

It's a test to the fanbase, actually. The response often "spices things up"... until moderator intervention is needed.

Well I don't think anyone should give someone a hard time for their personal score of a series.

But different scores can mean different things to people. For me a 7 would be something I enjoyed but its heavily flawed too. If I was to give a letter grade it would be a C. I don't regret watching it but I probably wouldn't buy it either.

I simply drop shows I'm not enjoying. What I watch is dictated by my enjoyment, and unfortunately, I don't have unlimited time for watching everything a season has to offer. With that in mind, I only recommend stuff that I enjoy, and so, usually have very little to say about series that do not suit my interests.

With that in mind, popular series usually have a reason for being popular. Granted, there will be flaws (e.g. weaker storyline, unlikable characters, poor animation) in almost anything, but the more popular series do something right that appeal to people. For instance, I see a lot of criticism directed at K-On! fans for being individuals who do not appreciate complexity (to raise an example), but from a personal perspective, there is nothing inherently wrong with K-On! in itself. K-On! is merely a presentation of high school life from a particular perspective and it does that sufficiently well.

Personal discussion aside, the response to the original question, that some people watch everything to gain a fuller understanding of all the shows offered, is a succinct account for it. I heard somewhere that these individuals watch these shows and discuss them in reasonable detail so everyone else is spared the trouble of watching some shows

Sometimes you are hoping for a "it will get better later" kind of experience. I am sure some people would have dropped Madoka, Steins;Gate or Clannad if they trusted the first few episodes.
Even Little Busters may full under a show that starts weak, slow but will get better later.